San Francisco Giants CIt is no secret that the Giants are having a miserable 2017 season. A team that had so much hope coming out of spring training now finds itself 20 games under .500 and 20 games behind the first place Colorado Rockies. It might seem like things cannot get much worse for the beleaguered Giants. However, that is not true. The reality is that the Giants are on pace to have the worst record in the history of the franchise. As of right now, the current holder of that dubious distinction is the 1985 squad that lost 100 games. It is the only time the Giants have had a loss total in triple digits.

Giants fans are obviously very upset by this disappointing and unexpected turn of events. Fans who follow the team closely might not have realistically expected the Giants to win the World Series this year. However, being in the playoff hunt in late September was a realistic goal for the Giants players and the people who pay to watch them play. Obviously, it would take a miracle for the Giants to get back in the playoff race at this point. It is a long shot even with the second wild card being added to give teams an additional way to make the playoffs.

The demise of the Giants in 2017 has been a collaborative effort. The team's hitting, pitching and defense have all failed this year. Last year, the atrocious bullpen that the Giants were forced to deal with caused the team to lose quite a few games. They thought they had improved the back end of the bullpen with the offseason signing of closer Mark Melancon. However, he has been a huge disappointment when you consider that the Giants gave him a contract valued at $62 million over four years.

Giants manager Bruce Bochy has maintained a positive attitude this season despite the massive struggles of his team. The one thing that even Bochy must concede is that this is a veteran squad. It would be one thing if a bunch of young and inexperienced players were making the critical mistakes that have led to Giants losses this year. However, that is not the case. Veteran players making very large salaries have repeatedly let the team down. The fact that there is a lot of age on this team means that the organization will have some serious decisions to make at the trade deadline.